Domestic Abuse and Patient Confidentiality

Domestic abuse is a significant health issue. In recent years the health response to domestic abuse has become critical to an effective, coordinated response. Best practice guidance and recommendations have targeted health in terms of understanding risk and information sharing. In practice we know that doctors face significant challenges and sometimes conflicting guidance about information sharing and patient confidentiality especially as it relates to adults with capacity where children are not involved. Standing Together have been working closely with a number of partners about this very issue. Read what two of our partners, Dr. Charlotte Cohen and Dr. Rachel Caswell from the British Association for Sexual Health and HIV, have to say in their article in The British Medical Journal: “Patient confidentiality and autonomy: how do we account for coercive control?”

About us

Standing Together supports organisations, including the police, criminal
justice partners, social services, healthcare workers and charities, to
identify and respond effectively together to domestic violence. Our ultimate
aim is to help these agencies to work in partnership, so that people receive
the best support at the time they need it.